The First Rickenbachers of Orangeburg, South Carolina

Follow the links to see the original
records where available.

Introduction

This web page is the result of an ongoing effort to identify the first Rickenbachers in Orangeburg, and
their relationships to each other. What appeared at first to be a simple task rapidly turned into a large project
as major conflicts and contradictions were found in the existing data. My approach to solving these
problems has been to attempt to find, or at least identify, a primary or secondary source for every data
point. Although this search has not been completely successful to date, the information found has given me a much
better understanding of the early Rickenbachers in Orangeburg.

The result of these efforts is what I believe to be an accurate portrayal of the first three generations of
Rickenbachers in Orangeburg. The nine Rickenbachers in these three generations account for every
Rickenbacher reference in Orangeburg that I have been able to find between the years of 1735 and 1790. I
would be most interested in any evidence that proves or impliess the existence of any other Rickenbacher in
these three generations.

Acknowledgements

No work in genealogy is done in a vacuum and this one is no exception. My thanks to
Amelia Debusman, Estelle Evans and Beth Rickenbaker who freely shared their data and provided much ongoing positive feedback
as the effort progressed. Special thanks to Harry Ulmer, for the data he has shared, for his insightful comments and
for the many enjoyable discussions we have had. Also, special thanks to Joop Giesendanner, for his helpful comments and for his new transcriptions
of the "Giessendanner Record". It was the latter that provided the key piece of evidence that removed one of the last
unknowns and made it all fall into place.

Heinrich and Anna auctioned their belongings for 328 pounds 5 shillings and 4 pence (about $55,000 today) on 24 Mar 1735 in Runenberg. They started down the
Rhine in mid April in a party of 42 with the Gieglemanns (two families), the Salis, the Bitterlis, the Busers, and the Straumans (See Documents from the Swiss Archives).
All took passage on the ship Samuel, leaving Rotterdam about 11 May 1735. After a stop in Cowes, they arrived in Charleston on 13 Jul 1735. They left
Charleston on 24 Jul 1735 for Orangeburg.

Heinrich platted a grant of 350 acres and town lot #167 on 16 Oct 1735. Hillsboro Road runs approximately down the
middle of the grant. The approximate present day bounds of the grant are the Edisto River to the SW, Rutledge Avenue to the SE, Wells Drive to the NE,
and Mason Drive to the NW. The evidence suggests that Heinrich may have obtained his 350 acres by
claiming one family member from each of the Gieglemann families and two family members from the Sali family. Perhaps he had paid the passage
for them. What we do know is that the total of 1,200 acres granted to the four families correlates exactly with the 24 known members of these families.

Heinrich died in 1739 and Anna married Conrad Alder on 1 Jan 1740. She died 31 Aug 1759 and was buried on the Rickenbacher
plantation, then owned by her son Heini.

There is primary evidence that Hans Heinrich, Johannes, Elizabeth and Anne Catharina are children of Heini and Anna. Unfortunately, we
must rely on logic and secondary evidence for Nicholas, Samuel and Jacob.

For Nicholas, there is little choice. There is no evidence of any Richenbachers in Orangeburg at this time other than those numbered
1. through 9. above. Heini and Anna are the only viable candidates for his parents. Nicholas, the second son, was probably named after his maternal
grandfather, Niclaus Till (he is the first Nicholas in this Rickenbacher line). It is likely that he was baptized by the Rev
Giessendanner and that his is one of the missing records implied by Salley (p. 92): "The parts, preserved and translated, of those records kept
up to the time when the younger Giessendanner went to England [Oct 1749] are very meagre and scattering, but those kept after his return [Mar 1750]
are very complete."

The information for Samuel is really sparse though his existence seems certain. The fact that he was in the Orangeburgh Militia in 1781
indicates that he was born before 1765. Since these are all the Rickenbachers known to exist at this time, he is assumed to be a son
of Heini and Anna and is assumed to fit in the obvious gap between Anne Catharina and Jacob. There is a slim probability that he
was a son of Hans Heinrich.

For Jacob, we rely on Salley's quote (p. 67) from the writing of John Lucas: "The said Jacob
Rickenbacker [the grandfather of Donald and John C. Rowe] was the son of the first Rickenbacker that came to this country from Germany [Swwitzerland]."
Since Jacob was born over 20 years after the death of Heinrich, he must be the son of Heini.

Not much is known about Hans Heinrich. He (rather than Johannes) was probably the John who provided supplies to the militia during the Revolutionary War, and it was
probably he who was noted as the executor of Heini's estate on a Revolutionary War claim. He is one of the two John Rickenbackers who
appear in the census records for 1790, 1800, and 1810. Those census records indicate that he was married and probably had three sons
and two daughters.

(Thanks to Joop for giving us Hans Heinrich instead of Henry. That single piece of new data explained the two Johns
in the 1790, 1800, and 1810 census and removed a major source of uncertainty.)

4. Nicholas RICKENBACHER, Born: 1747? in Orangeburg, SC, Died: 7 Jul 1812 in
Orangeburg, SC, Married: Mary HECKLE, Born: 08 Jan 1748, Died: 15 Nov 1822 in Orangeburg, SC.Census records indicate that Nicholas and Mary may have had as many as eleven
children (5-6 sons and 4-5 daughters). I know of two (and speculate on two more):

Nicholas deeded 50 acres of land to "my son Henry" in 1806. I believe this is the same Henry whose death is recorded in the
Family Bible of Samuel E. Rickenbacker and who appears in the census of 1810 with a wife and two daughters.

I speculate that Jacob and Christeana, whose deaths are listed in the same bible, are also children of Nicholas.
I believe this is the same young Jacob who appears in the 1800 and 1810 censuses.

Some have speculated that a) Jacob was a brother of Heini, b) Christeana was his wife, and c) they were the parents of
Nicholas. I can find no evidence to support any of these speculations.

Little more is known about Johannes. He (rather than Hans Heinrich) was probably the John who served with Capt. Rumph during the
Revolutionary War. He is one of the two John Rickenbackers who appear in the census records for 1790, 1800, and 1810. Those census
records indicate that his wife was probably born 1775 - 1785 and that they may have had one son and three daughters.
The census records suggest that the son and one of the daughters may have died young.

Independent family sources (Izlar and Baxter) say that Johannes's wife was Elizabeth Rowe and that she was the mother of Ann (Izlar) and Mary (Baxter).
Since Ann appears to be among the oldest of the children and Mary appears to be the youngest, it's likely that Elizabeth Rowe
was Johannes's only wife.

When I first found this Samuel, aged 45+ in the 1820 census, I thought he was a census taker's mistake. Since then
I've found him in the 30 Nov 1781 pay abstract of Capt. Samuel Rowe's Company of the Orangeburgh Militia along with John
Rikenbacker (presumably Johannes) and Jacob Rikenbacker. That is pretty solid proof of his existence. Since members
of the militia were supposed to be at least 16 years old, he must have been born before 1765. I have tentatively placed him
here in the fairly obvious gap between Anne Catharina and Jacob. There is a small probability that Samuel was the son
of Hans Heinrich but I think it more likely that he was a son of Heini and Anna as shown here.

Census records are consistent with Jacob having only five children. I am not convinced that Jacob married Margaret when
she was 15 or younger. I suspect she was a second wife and they actually married abt. 1790.